12/18/2013

The Fulton Street Transit Center currently being built in the Financial District of Manhattan is shaping up to be not only the biggest place to catch a train in the five boroughs, but also the coolest. Where normally you'd expect the MTA to build tunnels through the ground, at Fulton Street they've assembled one to the sky. The MTA released a time-lapse video and a new set of photos that show a massive net lined with reflectors being installed inside the $1.4 billion dollar hub.

12/12/2013

Making a romping comeback to CBS's hit series, Nick Jonas is slated to return for the season finale of "Hawaii 5-0" as his signature hacker character.

Executive Producer Peter Lenkov revealed the big news to TV Fanatic, saying, "He's coming back in the finale. He was great, and he is such a good kid. You imagine a kid who has that much success...he's just a really, really good kid."

And although little is known about the episode's plot, more news surrounds the the 21-year-old, as he is working on a brand new thriller, entitled, "Careful What You Wish For," set for release in 2014.

The movie's plot is summed up as, "A guy gets more than he bargained for after entering into an affair with the wife of an investment banker. Soon, a suspicious death and substantial life insurance policy embroil him in a scandal."

12/07/2013

Relevant results from your own data now included

You've been able to search for installed apps by name for a while now, but today Google opened up a feature we first heard about when KitKat was announced — search hits from your installed app data.

You won't have to do anything, but developers of third party apps will. Some are ready, with names like IMDB, Wikipedia and Open Table already displaying relevant results. For these apps, the search result will include an "open in app" button that does exactly what you think it will — open the app with the relevant information ready for you.

In addition, searching for apps will now show relevant results. A search for downhill ski app (Google's example) will show results from Google Play with a handy button to go fetch them.

Google is actively working with developers to get more apps included. If you're a developer and want in on the action, visit here to get started.

11/28/2013

Making a snowy appearance while roaming the Big Apple, Rihanna arrived at her brother, Rorrey Fenty's, birthday party at Finale night club on Wednesday (November 27).

The "What Now" singer was sexy in a little white dress, wearing a long overcoat, and complimenting her outfit with a pair of black leather stockings and designer heels.

Honoring her brother with a quick tweet and a photo of his party poster on Twitter, the 25-year-old singer wrote, "My big lil bro @rorreyfenty birthday ba$hment continues!! Tonight in #NYC."

Reports also suggest that Rihanna donated $100,000 (Â£61,000) to help the Philippine victims of Typhoon Haiyan. She also tweeted, writing, "Thank you @RobinsonCano and @SkyDigg4 for getting on board with @UNICEF to help the people of the Philippines!!"

11/20/2013

Taking a little time to both business and pleasure in Los Angeles, “Twilight” lead man Kellen Lutz promoted the new clothing line Abbot + Main at a GQ event.

Keeping it casual in a gray hoodie, striped Henley and blue jeans, the 28-year-old was all smiles, playing with his dog before posing with fans for a few pics.

Kellen is hard at work, not only promoting his clothing line, but also on an impressive list of movies. Anime fans can rejoice knowing that his new movie, “Guardians of Luna” comes out in 2014 in the United States.

According to the synopsis, “One thousand years ago, an ancient race of shape-shifters -- known as the Gurrn -- fought to protect their home from warring human invaders. When they were defeated, their souls became trapped between the Earth and the Moon, bringing a curse upon the city of Steelhenge. To this day -- on the eve of each full moon -- a werewolf menace plagues Steelhenge, terrorizing its citizens and shaking the city to its core.”

11/16/2013

Three of the four surviving members of the 1942 Tokyo raid led by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, left to right, David Thatcher, Edward Saylor, and Richard Cole, pose next to a monument marking the raid, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, outside the National Museum for the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. The fourth surviving member, Robert Hite, was unable to travel to the ceremonies. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

Three of the four surviving members of the 1942 Tokyo raid led by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, left to right, David Thatcher, Edward Saylor, and Richard Cole, pose next to a monument marking the raid, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, outside the National Museum for the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. The fourth surviving member, Robert Hite, was unable to travel to the ceremonies. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

Richard Cole, center, proposes a toast with two other surviving members of the 1942 Tokyo raid led by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, Edward Saylor, left, and David Thatcher, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, at the National Museum for the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. The fourth surviving member, Robert Hite, was unable to travel to the ceremonies. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

David Thatcher, one of the four surviving members of the 1942 raid on Tokyo led by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, waves from a car as he arrives at the National Museum of the US Air Force, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, in Dayton, Ohio. Three of the four surviving members of the WWII raid came for a final toast in the evening. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

FILE - In this July 14, 1943 file photo, Maj. Gen. James Doolittle, (third from left, front row) who led the air raid on Japan, April 18, 1942, and some of the men who flew with him drink a champagne toast from coffee cups during a reunion in North Africa on the first anniversary of the flight. Flyers are left to right front row: Maj. William Bower, Ravenna, OH; Maj. Travis Hoover, Arlington, Calif.; Maj. Gen. Doolittle Lt. Col. Harvey Hinman, San Francisco, (not one of raiders); Capt. Neston C. Daniel, Plaquemine, LA., Back row left to right: Capt. Howard A. Sessler of Arlington, Mass., who brought the picture to this country; Capt. William R. Pound, Jr., Kent Homes VA.; Maj. Rodney R. Wilder, Taylor, Tex.; Capt. James M. Arker, Livingston, Tex., Maj. Charles R. Greening, Tacoma, Wash., Maj. Joseph Klein, Paradise, Tex.; Capt. Griffith P. William, San. Diego, Calif., and Capt. Thomas C. Griffin, Chicago, Ill. (AP Photo)

FILE - In this Sept. 4, 1945 file photo, three of the fliers who raided Tokyo with Gen. James Doolittle in April,1942, are photographed in Washington, D.C. From left, Sgt. J.D. De Shazer, Salem, Ore, 1st Lt. Robert Hite, Earth, Tex., and 1st LT. C.J. Hielson, Hyrum, Utah. The three fliers left Karachi Sept.1 after being rescued from a Japanese prison. Thousands of visitors streamed to the national Air Force museum on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013 to pay a Veterans Day weekend tribute to the few surviving members of the Doolittle Raiders, airmen whose daring raid on Japan helped boost American morale during World War II, as they planned to make their ceremonial final toast together. Only four of the 80 Raiders are still living, and one was unable to attend because of health issues. (AP Photo)

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Known as the Doolittle Raiders, the 80 men who risked their lives on a World War II bombing mission on Japan after the attack on Pearl Harbor were toasted one last time by their surviving comrades and honored with a Veterans Day weekend of fanfare shared by thousands.

Three of the four surviving Raiders attended the toast Saturday at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force near Dayton, Ohio. Their late commander, Lt. Gen. James "Jimmy" Doolittle, started the tradition but they decided this autumn's ceremony would be their last.

11/14/2013

FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2007, file photo, a dump wagon adds freshly gathered corn cobs to a pile on a farm near Hurley, S.D. The first trickle of fuels made from agricultural waste, including corn cobs, is finally winding its way into the nation's energy supply, after years of broken promises and hype promoting a next-generation fuel source cleaner than oil. As refineries produce this so-called cellulosic fuel, it has become clear, even to the industry's allies, that the benefits remain, as ever, years away. (AP Photo/Dirk Lammers, File)

FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2007, file photo, a dump wagon adds freshly gathered corn cobs to a pile on a farm near Hurley, S.D. The first trickle of fuels made from agricultural waste, including corn cobs, is finally winding its way into the nation's energy supply, after years of broken promises and hype promoting a next-generation fuel source cleaner than oil. As refineries produce this so-called cellulosic fuel, it has become clear, even to the industry's allies, that the benefits remain, as ever, years away. (AP Photo/Dirk Lammers, File)

ADVANCE FOR NOV. 13 -- In this Oct. 24, 2013 photo Robert Malsom checks corn in one of his fields near Roscoe, S.D. Malsam nearly went broke in the 1980s when corn was cheap. So now that prices are high and he can finally make a profit, he's not about to apologize for ripping up prairieland to plant corn. (AP Photo/Doug Dreyer)

NEW YORK (AP) — The first trickle of fuels made from agricultural waste is finally winding its way into the nation's energy supply, after years of broken promises and hype promoting a next-generation fuel source cleaner than oil.

But as refineries churn out this so-called cellulosic fuel, it has become clear, even to the industry's allies, that the benefits remain, as ever, years away.

The failure so far of cellulosic fuel is central to the debate over corn-based ethanol, a centerpiece of America's green-energy strategy. Ethanol from corn has proven far more damaging to the environment than the government predicted, and cellulosic fuel hasn't emerged as a replacement.

"A lot of people were willing to go with corn ethanol because it's a bridge product," said Silvia Secchi, an agricultural economist at Southern Illinois University.

But until significant cellulosic fuel materializes, she said, "It's a bridge to nowhere."

Cellulosics were the linchpin of part of a landmark 2007 energy law that required oil companies to blend billions of gallons of biofuel into America's gasoline supply. The quota was to be met first by corn ethanol and then, in later years, by more fuels made with non-food sources.

It hasn't worked out.

"Cellulosic has been five years away for 20 years now," said Nathanael Greene, a biofuels expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council. "Now the first projects are up and running, but actually it's still five years away."

Cellulosic makers are expected to turn out at most 6 million gallons of fuel this year, the government says. That's enough fuel to meet U.S. demand for 11 minutes. It's less than 1 percent of what Congress initially required to be on the market this year.

Corn ethanol is essentially as simple to make as moonshine but requires fossil fuels to plant, grow and distill. For that reason, it has limited environmental benefits and some drastic side effects.

Cellulosic biofuels, meanwhile, are made from grass, municipal waste or the woody, non-edible parts of plants — all of which take less land and energy to produce. Cellulosics offer a huge reduction in greenhouse gases compared with petroleum-based fuels and they don't use food sources.

In Vero Beach, Fla., for example, agricultural waste and trash are being turned into ethanol. In Columbus, Miss., yellow pine wood chips are being turned into gasoline and diesel. In Emmetsburg, Iowa, and Hugoton, Kan., construction is nearly complete on large refineries that will turn corncobs, leaves and stalks into ethanol.

But despite the mandate and government subsidies, cellulosic fuels haven't performed. This year will be the fourth in a row the biofuels industry failed by large margins to meet required targets for cellulosic biofuels.

"Has it taken longer than we expected? Yes," acknowledges Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

The Obama administration's annual estimates of cellulosic fuel production have proven wildly inaccurate. In 2010, the administration projected 5 million gallons would be available. In 2011, it raised the projection to 6.6 million.

Both years, the total was zero.

The administration defended its projections, saying it was trying to use the biofuel law as a way to promote development of cellulosic fuel. But the projections were so far off that, in January, a federal appeals court said the administration improperly let its "aspirations" for cellulosic fuel influence its analysis.

Even with the first few plants running, supporters acknowledge there is almost no chance to meet the law's original yearly targets that top out at 16 billion gallons by 2022.

"It's simply not plausible," said Jeremy Martin, a biofuels expert at the Union of Concerned Scientists. "2030 is the soonest you can anticipate it to be at that level."

The EPA is weighing how deeply to reduce targets for cellulosic fuels for next year and beyond. Biofuel supporters want higher targets to spur investment in new facilities. Opponents want low targets to reflect what's available in the market and the chronic underperformance of cellulosic makers.

Cellulosic's great promise will likely be enough to keep it in the Obama administration's favor.

"There seems to be recognition among the administration that cellulosic fuels haven't met the targets, but there's still support for them," said Timothy Cheung, an analyst at ClearView Energy Partners, a Washington research and consulting firm.

Cellulosic fuels have lagged expectations for several reasons. For one, expectations were simply set too high. To attract support from Washington and money from investors, the industry underestimated and understated the difficulty of turning cellulose into fuel.

Cellulose is the stuff that makes plants strong, and it has evolved over several hundred million years to resist being broken down by heat, chemicals or microbes. That makes it difficult to produce these fuels fast enough, cheap enough or on a large enough scale to make economic sense.

The industry was also dealt a setback by the global financial crisis, which all but stopped commercial lending soon after the biofuel mandates were established in 2007.

Hundreds of companies failed that had attracted hundreds of millions of dollars from venture capitalists and government financing.

Sometimes the microbes or chemical treatments used to break down the plant matter were too expensive or didn't work fast enough.

Other times, the problems were more prosaic. Range Fuels, based in Colorado, failed because money dried up before it could fine-tune the machine that fed wood chips into a gassifier. KiOR, a Texas company making cellulosic gasoline and diesel in Mississippi, was delayed recently by a power failure, sending its stock price plummeting. The company has since fixed the problem, and is shipping fuel.

To supporters, these setbacks are neither surprising nor evidence of failure. Companies are trying to deliver enormous amounts of fuel using a complex, expensive process that has never been tried before.

"We may be three years late, but it doesn't make any difference globally over the long term," says Manuel Sanchez Ortega, chief executive of Abengoa, a Spanish engineering firm building a cellulosic ethanol plant in Kansas. "The first deep-water oil platform was not profitable. The first airplane was not profitable. The important thing is that it is working."

At 25 million gallons of annual output per plant, it would take the construction of 640 of these bio-refineries to meet the law's original goal.

Before investors trust the technology enough to finance construction of new facilities, several plants must work consistently at or near full capacity and show that they can make money for a year or more.

To Martin, cellulosic fuels are too important to stop trying to perfect them.

"The transition to looking beyond food for biofuels is as important today as it was in in 2007," he said. "If we can't do it as fast as we thought we could, it doesn't mean we should give up."

11/11/2013

You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

Meet the Nexus 5, Google's latest pure Android experience that's built by LG. It's a power user's dream that sells for a mere $350, yet it packs all the cutting-edge hardware you'd expect to see in any new top-shelf handset. Read all about it in our full review.

The curtains of Expand NY have officially closed, but we've got every bit and byte of the event archived in a neat little hub! Click on through for everything Expand, including Insert Coin competition winners, Raspberry Pi Make:Off, interviews from incredible speakers and more!

This week on Peripheral Vision, we met with CEO of LittleBits, Ayah Bdeir. "I didn't set out originally to start a company," she explained. Regardless of intention, however, this tinker-minded entrepreneur has managed to bring the power of circuitry to those with limited technical knowledge. Clink the link for the entire interview.

Engadget's own Ben Gilbert takes Valve's first consumer hardware for a spin. The Steam Controller, announced alongside SteamOS and Steam Machines this past September, aims to bridge the void between living room-compatibility and roughly 90 percent of Steam's game database. It's got clickable touchpads, but can it really serve gamers as a viable keyboard and mouse replacement? Click the link to find out.